In a continuing effort to improve the quality of shipping fruits, we, the inventors, typically hybridize a large number of peach, nectarine, plum, apricot, and cherry seedlings each year. We also grow a smaller number of open pollinated seeds of each of these fruits, usually to capture recessive traits. The present invention relates to a new and distinct variety of peach tree, which has been denominated varietally as ‘Sierra Princess’.
The present variety was hybridized by us in 2004 as a first generation cross using ‘Diamond Princess’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 7,066) peach as the selected seed parent and an unnamed white flesh peach (unpatented) as the selected pollen parent. The fruit of this cross was gathered that summer, and the seeds were removed, cracked, stratified, germinated, and grown as seedlings on their own root in our greenhouse. Upon reaching dormancy the seedlings were transplanted as a group to a cultivated area of our experimental orchard located near Le Grand, Calif., in Merced County (San Joaquin Valley). During the fruit evaluation season of 2008 we selected the present variety as a single tree from the group of seedlings described above. Subsequent to origination of the present variety of peach tree, we asexually reproduced it by budding and grafting in the experimental orchard described above, and such reproduction of plant and fruit characteristics were true to the original plant in all respects. The reproduction of the variety included the use of ‘Nemaguard’ (unpatented) rootstock upon which the present variety was compatible and true to type.
The present variety is similar to its seed parent ‘Diamond Princess’ peach (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 7,066) by having a vigorous tree with large blossoms, by being self-fertile, and producing freestone peaches that are mostly red in skin color, globose in shape, and firm in texture, but is quite distinguished therefrom by producing fruit that is white in flesh color instead of yellow, that is sweeter and less acidic in flavor, and that matures about thirty-five days later.
The present variety is most similar to ‘Snow Princess’ peach (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 12,570) by having a vigorous tree with large blossoms, by being self-fertile, and by producing white flesh freestone peaches that are large in size, mostly red in skin color, globose in shape, and firm in texture, but is distinguished therefrom by having globose instead of reniform leaf glands, by having a sweet instead of bitter tasting kernel, by blooming about 10 days later, and by producing fruit that has a balanced flavor between acid and sugar rather than subacidic, that can hang on the tree longer during the harvest season, and that matures about 10 days later.